The present invention relates to automatic dispensers of foodstuff products.
Various types of devices for automatically dispensing foodstuff products are already known in the art.
These are, in the majority of cases, vending machines designed to be installed in catering areas (railway or bus stations, airports, etc.) or, in general, in communities or similar environments.
With a certain degree of schematization, but without substantially departing from the actual situation, the foodstuffs that are suited for being dispensed by such known devices may be classified in two fundamental categories, namely:
packaged foodstuff products (whether these are bottled or canned beverages, ice-creams or even different products, such as potato crisps or pop-corn, in any case already packaged in boxes or bags), and
products prepared on the spot and hence not pre-packaged but anyway identifiable as xe2x80x9cflowablexe2x80x9d products, i.e., capable of flowing, whether because they are in the form of liquids (for example, the normal vending machines for coffee, tea and other hot drinks), or because they are in any case available in the form of particulate material that is able in some way to flow and hence to be dispensed (for example, the automatic vendors for hot pop-corn, prepared in the vending machine itself).
For all the products referred to above, the problem of conservation does not arise, except to a limited extent. Bottled or canned beverages or products already packaged in boxes or bags present a certain degree of preservability in time, even for quite long periods and/or in not particularly favourable environmental conditions.
The problem of preservability does not arise, instead (other than at the level of the starting material) for those other foodstuffs (coffee, tea, hot beverages, etc.) that are prepared as required on the spot, immediately before being dispensed by the vending machine.
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a device that is able to extend the sector of possible application of the techniques of automatic dispensing to other foodstuffs, such as sliceable products.
According to the present invention, the above purpose is achieved thanks to a device having the characteristics specifically called for in the ensuing claims.
It will be appreciated that, although the solution according to the invention has been developed with particular attention paid to the possible application to foodstuffs such as seasoned meat, it can in any case find application also with other sliceable foodstuffs of different kinds, such as cheese, bread, vegetables, etc., also in combination with one another.
This makes it possible, if required, to configure the dispensing device according to the invention as an automatic vending machine for dispensing sandwiches or rolls prepared on the spot.
In the currently preferred embodiment, the solution according to the invention is configured as an automatic dispensing machine that can be located, for example, in supermarkets and hypermarkets so as to be able to represent an alternative to the department selling fresh foodstuffs (usually referred to as xe2x80x9cdelicatessenxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cdelicatessen counterxe2x80x9d), normally present in such points of sale.
The aim of the foregoing is to enable, for example, the consumer to purchase the product, when is in a hurry, without having to queue and without having to accept compromises as regards the quantity (and, at least in some cases, also the quality) linked to the possible purchase of pre-packaged sliced products.
In particular, with the device according to the invention the consumer is able to select, by means of a special keypad, the product he wishes among the ones available in the dispensing device, as well as the corresponding amount in terms of weight or number of slices.
The device sees to preparing on the spot what the customer requests and to delivering it already packaged and labelled.
In the currently preferred embodiment of the invention, devised with particular attention paid to the possible application to seasoned-meat products, three specific arrangements are made available, according to the type of foodstuffs to be treated:
sausages and salami;
mortadella and the like; and
cooked and raw ham in xe2x80x9cbricksxe2x80x9d.
In the currently preferred embodiment, the device according to the invention comprises a cabinet with controlled atmosphere (in terms of temperature and/or in terms of the presence, for example, of an inert gas) to prevent deterioration (for example, oxidation) of the products in order to ensure their preservation. In this cabinet a product store is present which is made up of a series of compartments, one for each product, capable of containing cylindrical or parallelogram-shaped products of dimensions between a pre-defined minimum value and a pre-defined maximum value. The compartments are arranged preferably so as to be visible from the outside of the device through a transparent window, in particular, as regards the face of the product that is to be sliced.
An automatic system for picking up the selected product from the compartment of the storage unit enables the product to be positioned on the feed carriage of a slicing machine, also enabling the subsequent replacement of the product in the compartment of the storage unit after it has been sliced. The slicing machine is preferably configured as a programmable automatic slicer having a motor-driven feed carriage and delivery belt for dispensing the sliced product. Preferably associated to the slicing machine is a unit for discharging and containing scraps.
There is further provided a unit for feeding and positioning cardboard trays onto the delivery belt of the slicer in an area where the sliced product drops. Associated to this delivery belt is an electronic weighing machine, as well as a unit for packaging the tray containing the sliced product by wrapping it up in a plastic film with heat-sealing of the edges.
Moreover preferably provided is a thermal printer for labels, together with a labeller for application of the labels (containing indications of weight, price and/or the specific characteristics of the product), as well as a chute for delivery of the product outside the machine.
Operation of the device is controlled by means of a keypad, which enables the product to be selected and the desired amount in terms of weight or number of slices to be programmed.
The invention will now be described, purely by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the attached drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a front view partially cut-away and sectioned of a device according to the invention;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation, which is also partially cut-away and sectioned, of the device represented in FIG. 1 viewed from an angle rotated through 90xc2x0 with respect to the viewing point of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 illustrates, according to modalities that are substantially identical to those of FIG. 1, a possible variant embodiment of the invention; and
FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate, by way of example, the typical dimensions of the sliced products that may be dispensed using the device according to the invention.